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I. Salty Southeast Cruisers' Net and Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway Association Form Strategic Web Partnership
   The Salty Southeast Cruisers' Net is very proud to announce that our web site is now "the" STRATEGIC WEB PARTNER for the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway Association (AIWA, http://www.atlintracoastal.org)! Our two organizations will be working closely together to promote dredging and maintenance of the AICW! The SSECN welcomes the opportunity to be closely associated with the #1 organization supporting the betterment of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway!  The entire Salty Southeast Cruisers' Net bunch could not believe more strongly that the very best chance we have for maintaining and even expanding the great national resource represented by the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, is through the good offices of the AIWA. More than anyone else, this recently revitalized organization has the means and people in place to get the attention of the "powers that be" in Washington, DC, and funnel the moneys needed to the US Army Corps of Engineers. The SSECN takes pride in now being part of this process!  On a practical level, the SSECN has begun its partnership with the AIWA, by freely supplying all the necessary information from our site to allow the creation of "AICW Problem Stretches" and "AICW Navigation Alerts" pages on the AIWA's web site. Please take a look at:
and
 And, we have, in turn, published the latest edition of the AIWA's newsletter on the SSECN web site. Take a look at:
All future AIWA newsletters will also be published on the SSECN, and we have created a special category for this purpose. You can always reach the current, and archived AIWA newsletters by clicking the "AIWA" selection on the blue background menus, found at the top of all SSECN pages!
 Finally, if we could put on our editorial hats for a moment, everyone associated with the SSECN believes in our heart of hearts that it is VITAL for the cruising community to support and participate in the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway Association. The continued viability of the AICW is absolutely necessary for maintenance of the cruising lifestyle throughout the coastal waters of the Southeastern USA.
Even those of you who regularly cruise the waters of the Florida Keys and/or Western Florida, would be severely impacted if the steady flow of cruising traffic north and south on the AICW were to be interrupted. Because the AICW has always been around for all our lives, we maintain that it is difficult for most of us to even imagine how severely the entire pleasure craft and cruising industry would be impacted by the loss of the AICW.
 So, to complete this thought, individual cruisers can join the AICW for a mere $25.00. You will never spend a better $25 in your life. Please go to http://www.atlintracoastal.org/join-aiwa for more information.
As one of our regular readers, Captain Sterling, often says, "See you on the Waterway!"
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II. "On the Water ChartGuides" Publishes New Anchorage Guides for the AICW
Speaking of strategic partners, the SSECN is pleased to note the release of a two volume set of paper anchorage guides, authored and published by our dear friends and, what else, "strategic partners" Captains Diana and Mark Doyle, founders and owners of "On the Water ChartGuides." After perusing sample pages, we sincerely believe that cruisers will find these superb books to be great companion publications for our various SSECN Anchorage Directories!
Captain Mark Comments:
"The first volume runs from Hampton, VA to Beaufort, SC ... the second volume picks up in Hilton Head and runs down to Biscayne Bay. Their official titles are:
AnchorGuide for the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) Volume 1: Norfolk, VA to Beaufort, SC
AnchorGuide for the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) Volume 2: Hilton Head, SC to Miami, FL
 1. Diana and I are some of the last folks, single-handedly surveying firsthand ALL of these anchorages. We've been to ALL of them, multiple times. We know ALL of these anchorages intimately.
2. For ICW newbies this information is an obvious blessing ... showing EXACTLY where to anchor, with digital tracks showing how to get in and out ... with calibrated depths all along the way ... on official color NOAA charts.
What they see on their guide pages are what we saw during the survey.
 It's like looking over our shoulders as we cruise... pretty confidence-building for the neophyte.
3. BUT MAYBE AS IMPORTANTLY, but less obvious, is that for ICW veterans ... it's also a call to get back to cruising versus commuting. We all get into a rut, stopping at the same anchorages. With these detailed descriptions and depth-annotated tracks, discovering a new "first-entry" anchorage is no more stressful than defaulting to an old standby.
Great for all of those folks that quip, "I know the ICW like the back of my hand and don't need no stinking guide!" [wink]
 4. We're running a Pre-Print Web Special to get things rolling. Until these things come back from the printer, we're giving a 42% discount.
So NOW is the time for anyone who is going to have interest in this two-volume series to act.
As you often say, run ... don't walk! [smile]
 Please visit:
to learn more, and/or place an order! |
 III. Good Advice on How to Avoid AICW Shoaling at Statute Mile 570
In an earlier posting here on the Cruisers' Net, noted in our Alert of 7/16/12, (see http://cruisersnet.net/?p=91914), we presented several reports of AICW shoaling and marker confusion at the intersection of New River and Ramshorn Creek, five miles north of Fields Cut and the Savannah River, and near Statute Mile 570. We also established a "Navigational Alert" for these waters.
 A couple of days ago, we were very pleased to post a fresh and VERY USEFUL report from Captain Kevin Quinn about how to best bypass these shallows. We STRONGLY suggest that ALL cruisers who have even the slightest thought of cruising this southernmost portion of the South Carolina AICW take a good gander at:
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 IV. North Lake Worth Dinghy Landing Re-Opened, AICW Statute Mile 1014.2
North Lake Worth, hard by the southeastern Florida community of North Palm Beach, has long been a popular anchorage in no small part due to a small beach north of Little Lake Worth Bridge that has served as a dinghy landing. For some months now, there has been an ongoing reconstruction project centered on this span (8ft vertical clearance).
 News from fellow cruisers, and conversations with some of the area marina dockmasters gave us what we thought was solid information that this project was limiting or closing down dinghy access. However, things now look a little different.
Check out the full story at:
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 V. Expect Delays at Alligator River Bridge, AICW Statute Mile 84.2
The old, decrepit Alligator River Bridge crosses the Alligator River section of the AICW at Statute Mile 84, south of flashing marker #12. This span is finally receiving some much needed work, BUT this reconstruction is going to cause delays during late August of this year.
 Learn all at: http://cruisersnet.net/?p=93246 |
 VI. Morehead City, NC Dining/Seafood Shopping Recommendations (Statute Mile 203-205)
We have just posted a a VERY useful message from our good friends, Captains George and Ann, who liveaboard in Morehead City, North Carolina. They discuss some dining/shopping recommendations found within easy walking distance of SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS' NET SPONSOR, Morehead City Yacht Basin, or the other area dockage facilities, including the Morehead City  (Municipal) Docks, while others will require a short taxi ride. However, you get there, rely on these recommendations from knowledgeable MC locals!!!!
Check out:
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 VII. Praise for Legacy Harbour Marina, Fort Myers Waterfront, on the Okeechobee Waterway
It's always nice to receive positive reports about marina facilities, and it's even nicer when the marina in question is a SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS' NET SPONSOR!
Legacy Harbour Marina is one of two SSECN sponsors set along the downtown Fort Myers waterfront, flanking the Caloosahatchee River's southern banks. The other is Fort Myers (Municipal) Yacht Basin.
 Anyway, Captain Mary Alice Kearly has just sent us a really glowing review of Legacy Harbour. Check out her words of wisdom at:
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 IX. Advice on Anchor Choice for Thursday Cove Anchorage, Florida Keys, AICW Statute Mile 1132
This neat little anchorage lies just off the Florida Keys Inside/ICW route, immediately north of Jewfish Creek. You don't want to be caught here with fresh northerly winds, as we were one inky black night. You can take my word for it - that's a really bad idea! HOWEVER, during southerlies, we have always found this to be one of the best anchorages in the northern Florida Keys. HOWEVER, as you will see by following the link below, Captain Charles had a different sort of experience here!
Check out:
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